We’ve been collecting Allen County Business Histories and now have thirteen available (B & B Loan Company, Casa Restaurant Group, Coney Island, D.O. McComb and Sons Funeral Homes, Ellison Bakery, F. McConnell and Sons, Fox and Fox, Hartman Brothers Heating and Air Conditioning, Kelley Automotive, Milan Center Feed & Grain, The Oyster Bar, Poorman's Heating and Air Conditioning, and Vera Bradley). If you know of a company that would like their history included, please have them contact us.

And, finally, indexes for the North Side High School yearbooks 1969-1980 have been posted, adding more that 37,000 new records to an index that totals 126,292 entries.

Kloman Connections II by Eleanor Trapnell Kloman Wallace is more than 200 pages of information on various families connected to the Kloman family. Each family section ends with its own notes and bibliography, and the volume is keyword/name searchable.

The Johnson-Greer family Bible is the record of the Clarence-Arthur Johnson-Sallie Charlotte Greer family covering 1859-2009. This file includes the images of the pages as well as a transcription of the information.

The Willhite Family Records contains the family charts and handwritten notes of Howard E. Willhite of Brookville, Indiana, which he compiled in the 1970s and sent to Anita Willhite Fisher.

Family births of the Betts, Bingham, Burrows and Page Family, mainly of Greene, Chenanago County, New York, are listed in the Tennyson Birthday Book, donated by Jacquelyn Ruttinger of Kalamazoo, Michigan. The volume is a day by day calendar with quotations from Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s works on the left side, and space for a diary or notes by date on the right. The original owner, perhaps Eddie Bingham, noted the birth dates of family members in 1893, adding names and dates well into the 20th Century.

All of these items are great examples of the types of material that other family historians share with us each day. What might you have to share!

Jennifer Teege, who is of German and Nigerian descent made a startling family discovery. Her grandfather was the Nazi war criminal Amon Goeth, the commandant of the Kraków-Płaszów Concentration Camp, and portrayed by actor Ralph Fiennes in Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-winning 1993 movie Schindler’s List. Teege has written about her family history journey in an internationally bestselling book, “My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me: A Black Woman Discovers Her Family’s Nazi Past."

Come spend “An Evening with Jennifer Teege” on Monday, August 17, at 7:00 p.m., in the Theater of the Allen County Public Library, as she tells the engaging story of how she learned her family’s dark secret. The event is free and open to the public and Teege’s book, “My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me: A Black Woman Discovers Her Family’s Nazi Past,” will be available for purchase.

The event is sponsored by The Genealogy Center at the Allen County Public Library, IPFW Institute for Holocaust and Genocide Studies (IHGS), and the Congregation Achduth Vesholom. For more information, view the brochure, or go to the IHGS Facebook Page, or contact Steven Carr at Carr@IPFW.EDU, or Curt Witcher at Cwitcher@ACPL.INFO

One of the most popular of our Free Databases is the Evangelical Messenger Obituary Index, and recently another year, 1944, has been added to this collection. Thanks to the efforts of distant volunteer Anne Dallas Budd, there are 190,775 entries. The "Evangelical Messenger" was the English-language, weekly denominational publication associated with The Evangelical Church, and served a community of subscribers across many states. From this website, you can search for names, or browse through a chronological list of deaths. And remember, contact us with a list of obituary copies you’d like to obtain, provide your mailing address and, within a couple of weeks, we will send copies along with a bill for $2.50 per obituary. Check the index today!

Join us on Tuesday, July 28, 2015 at 7PM in Meeting Room A for the Maumee Valley Heritage Corridor’s “Layers of History.” Angie Quinn will focus on the Wren and Little Africa communities in Van Wert County, Ohio, the former Randolph family slaves in Darke and Mercer County, Ohio, and communities in Whitley County, Indiana, and Paulding, Ohio. Curt Witcher and Roberta Ridley will share "how-to" information about performing research using census data, government land office records, and other resources. John Aden, PhD, from the Fort Wayne African/African-American Historical Society Museum will provide some artifacts and collection items used by early rural African American residents in our region. Mark your calendar for this great program on the history and people of the Maumee River Valley!

Have a brick wall in your research? Would you like a greater understanding of some aspect of your research? The Genealogy Center is offering 30-minute personal research consultations with a staff member on some troublesome aspect of your research on Wednesday August 19th and Tuesday August 25th, from 2PM to 4PM, in The Genealogy Center. Call 260-421-1225 or email Genealogy@ACPL.Info for an appointment, providing basic information concerning the nature of your quandary. A staff member will be assigned and a time established for your consultation. Be sure to bring your research notes to your consultation.

John Beatty will be presenting "Beyond the Family Bible: Making the Most of Family Heirlooms and Artifacts in Genealogy Research" on Tuesday September 15, 2015, at 1:00 p.m. in the Globe Room of the Main Library. The program will discuss how to analyze a variety of inherited items - books, textiles, photographs, jewelry, paintings - and how they can aid in doing genealogical research. Often there are clues imbedded in such items that researchers can use to their advantage if they know where and how to look. The talk will also discuss a variety of printed sources for heirloom evaluation.

This lecture is part of “A Heritage of Needle Art,” sponsored by the Fort Wayne Area Embroiderer’s Guild, an exhibition that honors embroidery, in all its shapes and traditions, as a timeless and enduring expression of art. A sampling of historic needle art, on loan from the Embroiderers’ Guild of America’s Permanent Collection in Louisville KY, will be on display. Items selected for exhibition will represent a wide variety of embroidery techniques as well as cultural needle art traditions from all over the world. Highlighting the exhibit will be a 6' x 6' military insignia designed and embroidered by Master Sergeant Edward Kuhn in the early 1900. Kuhn used 800 skeins of silk and stitched the tapestry over a period of 14 years. The Exhibit Opening is on Friday, August 21 at 6:00pm in the Jeffrey R. Krull Gallery, Allen County Public Library, with a program on Sergeant Edward C Kuhn, Master Sergeant and Master Embroiderer, at 7:00 pm in the Globe Room, presented by Jeffrey Krull, retired Director of the Allen County Public Library and descendant of the creator of the exhibited Tapestry of the Insignia of the United States.

In The Genealogy Center’s previous incarnation on this site, most books in the collection were in “closed stacks.” That meant that patrons looked in the card catalog under the county name where their ancestors lived to identify books they wanted to see, and then put a call slip for each one into a tray. The call slip included the book’s call number and the patron’s seat number. Library staff called “pages” brought the books to the patron’s seat.

Fast-forward to 2003, when the library moved temporarily to Renaissance Square a few blocks away during the Big Remodel. Suddenly there was enough room for books in Genealogy to be open-stack and patrons could browse! And virtually all of The Genealogy Center’s materials have been open-stack ever since.

Being able to browse the stacks is mostly a good thing. We used to find that some of the established subject headings in the old catalog could be a bit misleading from the patron’s standpoint. The one that always comes to mind is “Registers of births, etc.” This subject heading was arbitrarily assigned to any book that had birth information in it. Many patrons submitted call slips for books they found with this subject heading, thinking they were requesting a birth records index. They didn’t realize that the card they saw was a subject card, not a title card, and that books with this subject heading did not necessarily pertain to birth records at all! In many cases, the book they received would be a cemetery transcription book.

But there are also reasons that checking the catalog and not relying solely on browsing should be done. I will give you two examples:
• Family histories – You can browse by surname to look for published family histories on your surnames of interest. It is very convenient since they are arranged on the shelves in the Family History Room alphabetically by the main family name in the volume. The key word here is “main family,” however. Most published family histories include more than just one surname. Our catalogers have examined each book and cross-referenced it under other surnames that feature significantly. Sometimes this includes dozens of names in a single book – and that book is only shelved alphabetically under the one name. What if the name in which you have interest is one of the others? Search the catalog using the terms “Surname family” (with quotation marks, putting the actual name in place of the word surname) to identify books you might be missing by browsing.
• At the beginning of each state section in The Genealogy Center are any books that have a statewide or regional focus, or cover more than one or two counties in a single volume. This statewide section is followed by a section of books for each county in the state, alphabetically. If you are browsing the section of books for the county in which you have interest but have skipped over the state section, you might be missing some valuable material. One example: The Mid-Michigan Genealogical Society in Lansing published a series of “Occasional Papers.” Because these are a set, they are filed in the statewide books at the beginning of the Michigan section. However, these are not all statewide books. No. 10 is Abstracts of the Early Probate Records of Ingham County, Michigan, 1838-1869 (GC 977.4 M59 No. 10). If you browse in the Ingham County section without checking the catalog, you might never know The Genealogy Center has this volume of probate abstracts.

All library catalogs are different. If you visit many libraries to do research, it can seem like a hassle to have to learn each system, particularly if the collection’s books are open-stack and arranged in a logical way. It can be tempting to just browse. But I would encourage you to do some catalog searching as well, just to be sure you don’t overlook something vital to your research.

Mark your calendar for an informative evening on Tuesday, July 28, 2015 at 7PM in Meeting Room A as Angie Quinn will discuss the Maumee Valley Heritage Corridor’s “Layers of History,” while Curt Witcher, and Roberta Ridley will share "how-to" information about performing research using census data, government land office records, and other resources. John Aden, PhD, from the Fort Wayne African/African-American Historical Society Museum will provide some artifacts and collection items used by early rural African American residents in our region.

So, we've covered some of the basic records that you will use to start your family history, but what's the next step? Join us for "Beyond Just Starting" on Saturday, July 25, 2015 at 9:30A in Meeting Room C to learn how to verify the information you find, and the importance of documenting what you find and where you found it. Discover how to harvest as much information as possible from various records. We will also show you how to use the free FamilySearch website, and provide a virtual tour of The Genealogy Center’s licensed databases. For more information, see brochure. To register for this free event, call 260-421-1225 or send an email.

Yes, The Genealogy Center is closed for three days this Fourth of July weekend. The plan to be closed for three day straight was made before the decision was made to begin open hours on Sundays this summer. It was decided that we would be closed in observance of the Fourth on Friday July 3rd, then closed on July 4th as well. When Sunday hours came up, I think the decision was made that we would remain closed on Sunday July 5th because we were all excited about a three day weekend.

So, yes, we relish our extra days of being closed and being off (no, no extra paid holidays) when family members are visiting and celebrating, and that extra sleep the day after all of the fireworks, whether you attend a show or just hear your neighbors shooting them off in their driveways, will be appreciated. But don’t think that we won’t miss you!

For me, and I believe all of my colleagues here at The Genealogy Center, the best part of the job is hearing your research tangles and trying to figure out one more place to search for the information you need. One more way to figure out what happened to the man who went missing. One more idea on how to find that woman’s parents. One more notion of what happened to all of the children after their parents died. These are the human stories that drew us to our own family history in the first place, so we understand the desire to search and the satisfaction of finding answers that seemed out of reach.

So enjoy the holiday! If you gather with family or friends, ask them to share their own memories. Even children have memories of past holidays and gatherings, and sharing memories may engender within them an interest in becoming part of the chain of family historians.

A few more family resources were posted to the Free Databases that might provide some clues for family historians.

The first is the Hut Family Bible Transcription. The original Bible is now lost to this branch of the family, who do, however, own and shared an English translation of the German content written by Theodore Henry Hut, the eldest child of Ludwig and Addelhia Brandt Hut. The couple, Theodore and another, child, Johanna, came of the United States from Germany in 1837, and settled in Ohio. The Bible record is in narrative form and follows the Theodore, his parents, three wives and children through births, marriages and deaths. The item is truly a valuable document for the family and we are pleased it was shared with us, and you.

The next item, transcribed and donated by Martha Bowes, is the Autobiography of Jane Ivison Scott Hanna, born about 1810 in Scotland and died in 1891 in Indiana. This account is dated 1877 and provides a fascinating look at her life before and after immigration.

Shelley Cardiel found and “rescued” three photographs of the some of the children of Nicholas and Rosa Bauer Plain of Atlanta, Indiana. Ms. Cardiel also provided identifying information about the family through census and cemetery records, adding to the value of these photos.

Barbara McCoy donated a copy of a family group record for the John Monroe Kirk family of Pennsylvania and Indiana, as well as an extended family photo taken in celebration of John’s 75th birthday in 1905. The photo features the descendants of John’s father and uncle, Jesse and Alexander Kirk.

And last, Ms. McCoy also donated a family group record and family photos of Joseph Ray Guernsey and Flora Anderson Phrall, also of Indiana. There are several World War I photos of Joseph Ray, including one with a group of other (unfortunately unidentified) servicemen at Fort Dix in 1918. Take a look and see if you can identify any of the other men.

We are very appreciative to be allowed to post these images, and welcome any that others may wish to contribute!

Also uploaded recently were video interviews with a number of Twentieth Century servicemen and their families including Don Theurer, World War II Army Air Corps; Vicki Khouli, Ominous Odyssey from World War II; Korean War Veteran Chuck Layton; Vietnam War sailor Dana Failor; Vietnam War Marine Bob Ihrie; Bernie Lee, 22-Year Marine Corps Veteran; Phil Plasterer, 82nd Airborne during the Afghanistan and Iraqi Wars; and an interview with Gerard Willis of the Allen County Council of Veterans. These are a fascinating look at big wars from front lines perspectives.

The Genealogy Center, like the rest of the Allen County Public Library facilities, will be closed Friday July 3rd through Sunday July 5th in observance of the Fourth of July holiday. We will reopen with out regular hours on Monday, July 6th. Enjoy the holiday and then get back to your research!

We now have twenty-six states covered in our Free Databases with the recent addition of an occupational association program for North Carolina. Although the four page program of the 1935 North Carolina State Association of Colored Graduate School Nurses is small, it contains the names of about three dozen people who were involved with the Association or with the meeting that was held on June 6th and 7th at the First Baptist Church of High Point, North Carolina. Talks included “Surgical Technique,” by Miss M. R. Searcy and a case study by Miss M. K. Long of the State Hospital. Other activities included a garden party on the lawn on June 6th and a sightseeing tour followed by a dance on June 7th. This is a wonderful source for anyone searching African-American professionals in the mid-1930s.

The Allen County Public Library is pleased to welcome Dr. Edna Greene Medford of Howard University for a Juneteenth presentation Friday, June 19, at 7 p.m. Dr. Medford will speak on “When Freedom Came: Emancipation and the Question of Timing.” The lecture will be in the Main Library Theater on Lower Level 2 and is free and open to the public.

June 19, 2015, is the 150th anniversary of Juneteenth, the first known celebration of the end of slavery in the United States. The event took place in Texas when Union soldiers arrived in Galveston on June 19, 1865, and told residents that the war was over and the slaves were free.[1]

Dr. Medford will discuss the various dates to be considered for the celebration of enslaved people gaining their freedom – January 1, 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation; June 19, 1865, when word finally reached far-flung Texas; or December 6, 1865, when the requisite number of states ratified the Thirteenth Amendment, abolishing slavery. Dr. Medford is an author, an instructor on African American history, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and 19th century America, and a member of the Board of Advisors of the Lincoln Forum. She received a 2009 bicentennial edition of the Order of Lincoln from the State of Illinois for her study of Lincoln and the Civil War era.Join us for this special presentation sponsored by the Allen County Public Library!

The First Baptist Scrapbooks contain all types of church activities and news from 1949 to 1995, including selected members’ obituaries and wedding announcements, bulletins and photographs. The North Christian Scrapbooks also contain bulletins, photos, accounts of various church activities and news items pertaining to the church or to its members. Although the scrapbooks are not indexed, the contents listings for each of these eight scrapbooks will provide a valuable guide to anyone searching for news or members of these churches.

Thank you to these two churches for allowing us to make these great resources available!

To start off with one of our most popular databases, the Evangelical Messenger Obituary Abstracts database just keeps growing, and now covers 1848 to 1943 with a total of 188, 555 entries thanks to Anne Dallas Budd, Rita Bone Kopp and Sally Zody Spreng.

How many times have you moved in your life? Not counting the multitude of trips to and from my college town, and the moves between residence halls and apartments there, I have changes towns seven times in my life, and within those towns my family moved from one residence to another an additional nine times. At every move, we had to dispose of a lot of unnecessary items before moving. Old furniture, clothes or small appliances might go to a charity organization, but many broken-beyond-repair items and other junk ended up in the alley awaiting the garbage truck.

Why am I sharing these memories? Because sometime in the future, you, too, may make a move. You, too, will go through your possessions, selecting what to take with you and what to jettison. Along with all of the other stuff that you’ve hauled from one abode to another or stored for years will be items that you hate to throw away, but know that, really, are not worth taking. These items could include church or association directories, military or family reunion programs and directories, and school directories or yearbooks.

Stop! Don’t throw those items out! Send them to The Genealogy Center! We, as genealogists, examine city directories, pour over tax lists and pounce on lists of letters left at the post office, but forget that the records we so blithely think to discard could be valuable to future generations. So when you decide that you don’t need that high (or elementary) school annual, that homeowners’ association directory or those military reunion booklets, send them to us and we will be happy to have them as part of our collection. Contact us if you have questions.

And remember that if you have friends, family members or neighbors that are clearing out their houses in preparation of a move, ask them to send that type of material to us instead of the putting them in the dumpster. One person’s trash is our collection’s treasure!

Global Family Reunion will be Saturday, June 6, in New York City. The event, brainchild of author A. J. Jacobs, celebrates that we are all part of one big family – we are all cousins! The New York activities, including speakers, games, and other events, will take place on the grounds of the legendary 1964 World’s Fair, now home to the New York Hall of Science. Our local “branch party” will feature live streaming from New York on Saturday. Proceeds from ticket sales to the New York event will go toward finding a cure for Alzheimer’s Disease. Events at ACPL are free.

Full details about local activities are available in the Global Family Reunion brochure. Besides other events, there will be three family photo opportunities:
• Have your family photo taken in The Great Hall and we will email you a copy
• Take a silly picture of your family with props in Children’s Services
• You Are (Were) Here – Take a photo in front of the green screen in Young Adult Services & we’ll superimpose it on a country of your ancestors’ origin

In addition, bring heritage family photos and we will scan them, preserve them on our website, and email you a copy!

There will be chess and board games in Young Adult Services noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, as well as outdoor games – bocce ball on Friday, cornhole on Saturday, and badminton on Sunday – on the Library Plaza!

The Genealogy Center will present talks on Family History Fun, Ways to Display Your Family History Using Pinterest, Storytelling, Exciting Ways to Share Your Genealogy, and Being Creative … with Your Family History.

There’s more! Keep watching this blog, The Genealogy Center’s website, our social media outlets and Genealogy Gems to learn times and days for various activities.